The Question is Who?

I watch the news, a lot and I read even more on the internet. Being a conservative republican is not easy these days. While I think we will do well in the mid-terms coming up, I am troubled about two years from now. Who can we (conservatives) put up against Obama (or Clinton if you believe the rumors), there are a lot of names swirling around, but I am not sure about any of them.

Sarah Palin- She's smart, but I don't think she has the experience to run the Country. Being governor is usually enough and I understand Alaska is a big state with big issues that the governor has to deal with. But I can't equate that to running the US, especially a US that is in a financial crisis almost Great Depression sized. I see a bright future for her in the RNC chair.

John McCain- That's a damn joke and I never want to hear it again. RINO.

Fred Thompson- I think he may have been able to do the job two years ago but now he's done.

Mitt Romney- May be our best chance, he's a governor, he's a businessman, but he's also just barely conservative. Governing a state like Massachusetts you have to be a center guy. It's a blue state and it has it's own socialized health care, I know Romney says what works for the state is not for the country but that will always be in my head, up front. Oh and I don't care about his religion, Mormons have never flown a plane into a building, yes that's how I judge!

John Boehner- He also may be our best chance. Though I don't like the idea of a congressman advancing to the seat of President. Boehner is very smart and politically savvy, he was even the president of a fairly large plastics company which gives him some business experience. But he is also a politician through and through and my gut tells me to be wary of that. Politicians say whatever they have to, to get elected the R or D mean nothing.

???????????- There are a few other names out there but it is all up in the air. I know if we want to dethrone the O we will need a solid conservative candidate who is going to produce real change, not the same old canned political crap we've been getting for the past 18 years.

A Lot To Cover

The last time I posted I was on the other side of the world in Jerusalem, over two months ago. I know it has been awhile but things were pretty crazy. I want to cover Israel first then I will get to the last month in a half.

For a guy who had never left North America going to Israel was a huge step, a new world where I knew no one or the language. I arrived in the Old City going on fifty four hours of no sleep and no idea what I had gotten myself into. Aish Ha Torah Yeshiva is a school of Jews who want to learn what Judaism is and how it all works. From the basics all the way up to deep Kabalah (no not Madonna's stupid red string).  Being a Christian in a Jewish school was very interesting. I didn't tell too many people about my back round so being Jewish by birth I fit in well, I also heard some very strange things. Most of which I shrugged off but some things just stuck with me. I am not going to get into too much detail right now, maybe next post. I will say that Old City Jerusalem is an amazing place and I had an incredible experiance. I wouldn't trade the trip for a million dollars. I met great people and made friends I hope to keep for the rest of my days. The learning was very intense, I submerged myself in the culture and ultimately bit of more than I could chew. I was full on kosher and shomer shabbos (mean I kept the sabbath). It was more than I could handle and I spun out after three weeks, the day after Passover. Some good advise from a very wise Rabbi had me grounded shortly after but not before I found a place I could go and blow off all the steam that built during long days of class, a dank old dorm room and mediocre meals. I'll get to that place next, but let me finish with Aish. I learned more in the three and a half months there then any other school I've ever attended. I even picked up a good bit of Hebrew, I have always wanted to be multi-lingual and it came so easy I am going to keep learning. I ultimately want to read the original Biblical text myself. That and I figure if I can get Hebrew down, learning another, maybe Japanese will be easier.

The other place I spent my time in was Scream, a heavy metal bar just outside the Old City. Talk about conflicting worlds (though not to me)! Scream was a place I could be myself, they played the music I love and no one was judging or insulting. At Scream I met even more great people, from the staff to the regulars, who I must add were mostly Russian (or Ukrainian), I heard almost as much Russian as Hebrew! Now I did drink, a lot, it"s not something I am proud of, but it was a way for me to relax and enjoy myself. I would have burned out and left much sooner if I didn't find Scream. It helped that my dorm neighbor Mark was a metal head as well, I had a p.i.c. and we had some great times.

When I left Jerusalem for the airport in Tel Aviv I was already almost twenty four hours without sleep and that didn't change for another twenty hours. Forty four hours later I was home and getting my first nights sleep. I spent the week vegging out and figured I would get on the job hunt. But not more than a week back and I ended up in the hospital with this crazy infection in my leg. My right leg had swollen to double it's size, I had a fever and the pain was horrible. Ten days later I left the hospital pretty much the same way I went in minus the fever. The Docs told me it was cellulitus and if i kept up on the medication it would pass in time. Now two months later it is still not completely healed. But I can walk and the pain is gone so, glass half full I guess. Most of you have already heard all these stories, but I wanted them on paper anyway.

I will be posting regularly now and am willing to answer any questions about my trip.

A Quick Update

OK my time in Israel is rapidly coming to a close, but since I am still here this post will be short and sweet. When I get back I will post an extended review of my time here. Both what I am doing and the politics I experienced. One thing I will say is it has been cool and rainy almost the whole time I have been here, which is out of place being this is a desert! Global Warming forgot about the Holy Land I guess. Suck it Algore! I just recently read that the US is experiencing a record low number of tornadoes this year, btw it was supposed to be record highs. Along with that the "experts" are predicting a worse than normal hurricane season as well. Funny thing is they have said this every year since Katrina and been wrong every time. But God forbid we do get a bad season and the nuts will claim some sort of victory. Weirdos! The sad part is the brainwashed masses are still crying over the melting glaciers in the north drowning the poor polar bears. Someone should tell them polar bears are expert swimmers and can hold their breath for an hour or better. I would rant more but my fingers are freezing off here in the cold of the Israeli desert.

Israel

Ok I know I haven't posted in a while, I'm currently in Jerusalem on a study trip. In my quest to get closer to God I thought this place would be a good stepping stone. I have been learning and seeing the sites, which are to numerous to name, using my time here to hep figure out some direction in this crazy mixed up world.

My internet access is hard to come by, usually I am standing outside using the signal of a nice guy who doesn't mind people killing his bandwidth. So following the news is kinda tough but from what I've seen it's business as usual for the Obama Admin. I can tell you the people here are NOT fans. Biden was here last week and it led to the Arab's rioting and many police and soldiers wounded. From what I can tell Obama is having enough trouble at home to keep him busy without nosing into Israel's sovereign business.

I have also found Israel like most other places base a lot of their cooking on tomatoes. Which would be great if I wasn't allergic! Last week the school I am at served 6 tomato based dishes in 4 days, and the cheapest replacement is pizza, more jokes on me. But I'll survive even though peanut butter is $8 for a regular sized jar. No TV or radio here makes Jason something... something... At least I can go outside and get an internet signal a couple blocks from my dorm. I had found a closer spot but it was secluded and things got dicey when 3 arabs came and started hassling me. No more close internet.

My scheduled return date is June sixth, so I will try to post here when I can. Though I post daily updates on Facebook and quicker ones on Twitter.

To Palin or not to Palin?

There has certainly been a lot of emotion surrounding Sarah Palin in the last 18 months or so, some good, most coming from the MSM just downright mean. When the state controlled media goes to such huge measure to discredit someone you know they are deathly afraid. The Left is doing everything in their power to make sure Sarah Palin is not an option for 2012. The question I present to conservatives is should she be an option?

I have no doubt Sarah is a smart woman, but can she be President? Sure she was a governor, and Alaska is a big state but it's not a very populous state. Now I know you can say the same about Mitt Romney, but his executive experience doesn't stop with being governor. He has big business under his belt, she was a local mayor. Call me sexist but another issue that has to be considered is her children. It's more than just small children but one who is mentally disabled. Having Trig is a very big burden on her, her time will always be split between the country and her children. Sure many Presidents have had children in the White House but it is different with a woman and that one of the children has special needs. Folksy nature isn't a plus either. Jimmy Carter had a folksy nature... Enough said.  Don't misread me, I am not saying a woman can't be President, while I wouldn't have liked her any more than Obama, Hillary Clinton would have been a better choice for the Democrats. She would have been stronger than Obama. Sarah Palin just doesn't have what it takes to be President of the United States. I don't have a magic answer to who should run, but if we want to recapture the Executive Office then we have to find a person who is more than just charismatic and folksy.

Say Cheese!

So there it is, what it looks like when you are subjected to a full body scanner. I am conflicted on using them in the US. Safety should come first and other than swallowing the explosives this looks like a pretty good way to see what a person is packing (no pun intended). In this troubled time we live in you got to give to get. Of course how much are people willing to give?

In a post 9/11 world we have put up with many many extra hours standing in airports, been deprived of our toothpaste and most would say it is worth it to be safe. But the crotch bomber of X-mas '09 showed us it's not enough. So is the next step parading naked in front of some barely high school diploma holding TSA agent. Plus is this just dumbing down the job? I once saw a cash register at a Taco Bell in Huntington Beach, CA with pictures on the buttons. So they had dumbed the job down to you ordering a taco and the kid behind the counter pressing a picture of a taco! Same principle applies here, will the scan make the TSA lazy? The crotch bomber got on the plane not only with his explodable panties but a syringe full of the acid he needed to make his explosive cocktail. Add to that the religious people that would find it demeaning to have some looking at them and or their spouses exposed. Not that I care about offending people so much as their response. Jews and the like would take it on the shoulder and move on but we all know how butt hurt muslims get and well that's why we're in this mess in the first place. I also saw an interview with a former head honcho from EL AL (Israeli airline) who has a pretty good record of zero attacks in the last 30+ years. He said we don't need scanners we need to profile, racially and any other way we can. But we are too worried about offending someone, by profiling them, not looking at them naked!

Divided We Fall

I have been as excited about the Tea Parties as the next guy, but I am starting to think we are headed down the wrong path. It is a fact that the Republican Party has been slipping away from conservatives over the last 10 years, maybe longer, running Bob Dole in '96 was pretty lame. The RNC has repeatedly decided just not to campaign in areas they think chances are slim. But being in California , in the late 90's I believe, and watching Matt Fong struggle without  RNC support and lose to Diane Feinstein by 8 points makes me very angry. But all that anger aside splitting the party in two just guarantees Obama a second term, and that is exactly what the dems would love to see happen. I've attended a few tea parties and watched several more on TV and the internet, I was proud to be a part and see other people who were like me and frustrated with what is happening in the Govt. But never did those feelings, not even for a second, make me want to split the republican party. We know what happens to third party candidates, they suck votes of off whichever party they are closest to and send the other guy into the winners circle. The excuse "We have to show the republicans we are unhappy by letting them lose" has not worked. They lost and we paid the price! We are drowning our grandchildren in debt. We can't afford the democrats another minute, much less another term by splitting our party.

I don't like it one bit. I have left the party before and came back after reading "If it's Not Close They Can't Cheat" by Hugh Hewitt (I'm pretty sure). He was right. We can't afford even a close race. We have to win and win big. Forming a "Tea Party" will only take us farther from that goal. That brings me to Sarah Palin, a very smart woman who has way more experience than Obama (exectutive wise). But we gotta face the facts she doesn't have enough experience by our standards to be President of the United States. Ladies don't mis-read me, I am not saying a Woman can't be President, just not Sarah Palin.

We need an experienced Republican (any race, creed or gender) to stand up and take on the challenge of being President. Then we have to back that person 100%. We cannot be sidetracked by a shiny new Tea Party. I hear what you are saying, who is it? Who will step up and take reigns? Honestly, I don't know. I can throw out names but it won't help. That being said it is time for the Republican party to step it up too. The RNC is weak and it bends to political correctness and whining liberals. I am not sire Michael Steele has what it takes to do it. But someone has to. If the RNC wants to survive the next 6-10 years someone has to take a stand.

Someone is out there, maybe not a Reagan, Lincoln, or Washington. But someone who will make a name for themselves. A name that will be synonymous with the great ones not living in their shadows. Someone who understands we are one Nation under God, indivisible. United we stand!